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So.
We finally went to Chicago over Spring Break. Driving nearly 1000 miles one way in a large red moving van (that leaks out everything but transmission fluid overnight) for my mom's business, we went to retrieve our stuff that has been sitting in storage up there (for which I paid nearly $200 a month) for nearly TWO YEARS.
Events from the trip:
1) I don't have good depth perception in the dark, which is to say that I can't tell a shadow from a hole in the ground if it's nighttime. I actually don't have good depth perception anyway (apparently my eyes don't work together in that way... I tell distance by constantly doing some sort of mental calculations based on the size of the object compared to the size it should be and the size of other objects around it. Funky.), but at night it's far worse. I guess I lose a lot of my reference visuals or something. Anyway, so this means that trips always start getting interesting for me at night, as I begin to flinch every time we approach a bridge or another vehicle in any way that might suggest we might not be going on a straight path past the obstacle, because to me it looks like the crash is going to be imminent. Lucky for me a) my husband is an understanding sort of fellow and b) we had the cash to stop for the night over the entire trip. I spent most of the Ozarks flinching at the Black Gullies of Death on either side of the interstate until we stopped.
2) See #1, with the reference of telling a shadow from a hole in the ground? I proved it when we stopped at a Shoneys for dinner (at least it wasn't a drive-thru burger) and parked the truck in the back. While walking to the front, I stepped into a shadow which was actually a recessed drainage grate. Picture me, trying to step on the ground and missing, picture me trying to catch myself with my other foot, and that one missing the ground too. Picture me then falling head first into the front left fender and wheel of some pickup or other, and ending up with my arms up in front of me and lying on my back between the vehicles. Arms bruised, knees bruised, nose stinging a little but no signs of injury, foot throbbing like something in a bad romance novel. And I have to move things the next day. Yay.
3) Next day, foot has swollen, knee has swollen and bruises are looking all purpley and black and icky. We drive to Chicago with no further incident, except that we have to abandon our drive through the Loop to look at the skyline because of a traffic jam, forcing us to get off at the exit to my old job at FASA and drive past the building, then along the way I took home most of the time when we still lived there. Cue tears and sniffling at seeing all those familiar sights (that I was always very fond of, really... I love architecture, and that's just one of the things I greatly miss about Chicago. I wasn't ready to leave it behind). I'm such a goober sometimes. Sigh.
4) We get half our stuff moved in an hour and a half before closing, managing to just sneak in before the office closed for the weekend and get our unit unlocked and everything. We then go to our hotel, order in from Giordano's because there's no way we were trying to drive that truck anywhere in the city, and sit around in the room for the evening with ice on my foot and a song in my heart. :) A nice hotel room with my husband and no children around... ahhhh.
5) Get the rest of the stuff loaded, stop by Games Plus for old times sake (We were staying out by O'Hare) and Ikea for a couple of things for the kids' room, and we're off again. Man, I really miss Ikea. I wouldn't buy most of the furniture they have, but the other stuff is both nice and cheap, and their restaurant was so nifty.... sigh.
6) Make it home. The rest of the trip was mostly boring, so I'll skip over that.
7)I have so many books. I knew I had a lot of books, but I had no idea I had that many. We're looking at like 12-15 boxes of books alone, not counting what I've amassed in my time as a freelancer since I left Chicago. Dear Lord. I've got to get rid of some.
8) My foot stayed swollen for nearly two weeks. I think I have a hairline fracture, as it hurts some of the time generally and specifically when I put pressure on my foot at an angle (like if I stand on my toes). I think it's along the long bone on the top of my arch. Suck. Just color me convalescing.
9) Oh, and stupid item of the whole thing: See, originally I had planned to be back in three weeks to pick up everything. Therefore, some things went into storage that should never have been placed there to begin with, and stayed there an awful long time.
Including a box of "food," mostly spices and booze and stuff.
Oh, and a bag of potatoes. That's right, I packed a bag of potatoes and let it sit for two freakin' years. Not that there are any potato-like substances left in it now (though perhaps CSI could identify them as former potatoes, but that's neither here nor there). I discovered it while unpacking yesterday. I have no idea why I did that, except that the afore mentioned three weeks was in mind at the time. I have no memory of doing so, but obviously I did. Ick. The rest of the box gets the glove treatment, as I'm scared of what I might find.
Oh, and the Glenfiddich and Glenmorangie were just fine, happily. So at least something good came out of all of this.
We finally went to Chicago over Spring Break. Driving nearly 1000 miles one way in a large red moving van (that leaks out everything but transmission fluid overnight) for my mom's business, we went to retrieve our stuff that has been sitting in storage up there (for which I paid nearly $200 a month) for nearly TWO YEARS.
Events from the trip:
1) I don't have good depth perception in the dark, which is to say that I can't tell a shadow from a hole in the ground if it's nighttime. I actually don't have good depth perception anyway (apparently my eyes don't work together in that way... I tell distance by constantly doing some sort of mental calculations based on the size of the object compared to the size it should be and the size of other objects around it. Funky.), but at night it's far worse. I guess I lose a lot of my reference visuals or something. Anyway, so this means that trips always start getting interesting for me at night, as I begin to flinch every time we approach a bridge or another vehicle in any way that might suggest we might not be going on a straight path past the obstacle, because to me it looks like the crash is going to be imminent. Lucky for me a) my husband is an understanding sort of fellow and b) we had the cash to stop for the night over the entire trip. I spent most of the Ozarks flinching at the Black Gullies of Death on either side of the interstate until we stopped.
2) See #1, with the reference of telling a shadow from a hole in the ground? I proved it when we stopped at a Shoneys for dinner (at least it wasn't a drive-thru burger) and parked the truck in the back. While walking to the front, I stepped into a shadow which was actually a recessed drainage grate. Picture me, trying to step on the ground and missing, picture me trying to catch myself with my other foot, and that one missing the ground too. Picture me then falling head first into the front left fender and wheel of some pickup or other, and ending up with my arms up in front of me and lying on my back between the vehicles. Arms bruised, knees bruised, nose stinging a little but no signs of injury, foot throbbing like something in a bad romance novel. And I have to move things the next day. Yay.
3) Next day, foot has swollen, knee has swollen and bruises are looking all purpley and black and icky. We drive to Chicago with no further incident, except that we have to abandon our drive through the Loop to look at the skyline because of a traffic jam, forcing us to get off at the exit to my old job at FASA and drive past the building, then along the way I took home most of the time when we still lived there. Cue tears and sniffling at seeing all those familiar sights (that I was always very fond of, really... I love architecture, and that's just one of the things I greatly miss about Chicago. I wasn't ready to leave it behind). I'm such a goober sometimes. Sigh.
4) We get half our stuff moved in an hour and a half before closing, managing to just sneak in before the office closed for the weekend and get our unit unlocked and everything. We then go to our hotel, order in from Giordano's because there's no way we were trying to drive that truck anywhere in the city, and sit around in the room for the evening with ice on my foot and a song in my heart. :) A nice hotel room with my husband and no children around... ahhhh.
5) Get the rest of the stuff loaded, stop by Games Plus for old times sake (We were staying out by O'Hare) and Ikea for a couple of things for the kids' room, and we're off again. Man, I really miss Ikea. I wouldn't buy most of the furniture they have, but the other stuff is both nice and cheap, and their restaurant was so nifty.... sigh.
6) Make it home. The rest of the trip was mostly boring, so I'll skip over that.
7)I have so many books. I knew I had a lot of books, but I had no idea I had that many. We're looking at like 12-15 boxes of books alone, not counting what I've amassed in my time as a freelancer since I left Chicago. Dear Lord. I've got to get rid of some.
8) My foot stayed swollen for nearly two weeks. I think I have a hairline fracture, as it hurts some of the time generally and specifically when I put pressure on my foot at an angle (like if I stand on my toes). I think it's along the long bone on the top of my arch. Suck. Just color me convalescing.
9) Oh, and stupid item of the whole thing: See, originally I had planned to be back in three weeks to pick up everything. Therefore, some things went into storage that should never have been placed there to begin with, and stayed there an awful long time.
Including a box of "food," mostly spices and booze and stuff.
Oh, and a bag of potatoes. That's right, I packed a bag of potatoes and let it sit for two freakin' years. Not that there are any potato-like substances left in it now (though perhaps CSI could identify them as former potatoes, but that's neither here nor there). I discovered it while unpacking yesterday. I have no idea why I did that, except that the afore mentioned three weeks was in mind at the time. I have no memory of doing so, but obviously I did. Ick. The rest of the box gets the glove treatment, as I'm scared of what I might find.
Oh, and the Glenfiddich and Glenmorangie were just fine, happily. So at least something good came out of all of this.
